Before ever after came today
by Noodlejelly
Summary: Yet another James/Lily romance set in the carefree days when MWPP ruled Hogwarts. Of course you know how it ends, but the journeys that led them there are the tales of legends. Life, death, love, rejection, secrets and betrayal before Peter even wakes up
1. Years one - three, unwilling companions

Disclaimer: I do not own anyone except Anna, Charles, Jeremy, Isabelle and Rose

A/N: Anyone who's read my story's before will probably know that I promised not to start any more story's before I finished my current ones. But I couldn't resist, so here is my first ever Lily/James story, I hope you like it and please review at the end even if you didn't

I don't really have much to go on except for Petunia's outburst at the start of book one, where she says 'She came home every holiday with her pockets full of frog-spawn, turning teacups into rats'. And 'But for my mother and father, it was Lily this and Lily that, they were proud' and finally 'She met that Potter at school and they left and got married and had you'. 

And the descriptions from the Mirror of Erised, 'She was a very pretty woman. She had dark red hair and her eyes were bright green. The tall, thin, black-haired man standing next to her put his arm around her. He wore glasses, and his hair was very untidy. It stuck up at the back, just like Harry's did.' 

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THE FIRST TWO CHAPTERS ARE PREQUELS IN A DIFFERENT FORMAT TO THE REST OF THE STORY

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First year, first day. Hogwarts Express

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James and Remus were walking through the various compartments of the train searching for Sirius and Peter who had gone chasing after the food cart when they had realised they were out of chocolate frogs. The next compartment that they entered had two girls, who appeared to be about their age, 

'Hey she's got red hair' James exclaimed pointing, Remus groaned, trust James to make a bad first impression, neither girl seemed amused by this comment, the girl with short black hair looked shocked and the girl James was pointing at with long red hair and sparkling green eyes looked furious

'What are you pointing at four eyes?' Lily snapped angrily at the small annoying boy with messy black hair who was openly pointing at her, Anna who was the girl with her had the feeling that her new friend was not somebody who liked to be messed around

'You' James replied cheekily

'Well you shouldn't' Lily narrowed her eyes 

'I will if I want' James spoke rather arrogantly as he dropped his arm to his side, which infuriated Lily even more

'In that case I'll punch you if I want' Lily stood up and walked towards James

'You wouldn't dare' James was rather surprised, he had never met a girl quite like this one

'James we really don't want to find out. Nice meeting you girls' Remus interrupted dragging James from the compartment

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First year. Charms corridor 

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'Don't move a muscle' James sprang round the corner and pointed his wand at Lily's back in the corridor as she made her way to the common room with Anna

'If it's a fight you want' Lily grabbed a sword from the suit of armour in front of her 'Then a fight you'll get'

'What the…' James exclaimed almost dropping his wand in surprise, he quickly grabbed a sword of his own and they exchanged a few harmless blows, while Sirius, Remus and Peter laughed at them, Anna was torn between worry and amusement, but she had quickly learnt that Lily could more than hold her own against James Potter

'Erm guys' Sirius who was stood at the corner of the corridor didn't want to stop his entertainment but felt he should

'Not now Sirius' James grunted from the effort of dodging Lily's sword 

'McGonagall's coming. RUN' Remus shouted, with a clang the swords were dropped and all six of them ran, when McGonagall entered the corridor all she found was two swords on the floor 

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End of second year. Kings Cross Station

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Lily was walking towards the barrier at Kings Cross at the end of a rather tiring second year, she had already said goodbye to Anna so she was ready to leave, just as she was about to go through the barrier she felt something hit her. She saw traces of a tomato trickling down her clothes, she turned to find the culprit and saw James whistling innocently nearby, she glared at him as he wandered over

'Just wait till next year Potter, I'll get you for that' Lily hissed in fury, James merely smiled happily in response and walked away. Lily tried to push all thoughts of him from her mind, she could look forward to a James free summer

'Hello dear, have you had a good year?' Lily's mum Rose gave her a quick kiss on the cheek when Lily reached where her parents were waiting

'Yes thanks, it's good to see you'

'We have exciting news, your father made a new friend' Lily's mother said actually looking excited, Lily didn't see what the big deal was but smiled anyway, just at that moment her father Charles came over with another man and woman who Lily presumed were his new friends

'This is Jeremy and Isabelle Potter, you might know their son James, I think he's in your year' Lily simply stared in shock, this could not be happening, 

'Yes we've met' Lily said in a hollow voice of disbelief, she gave a very weak smile in the Potter's direction

'Hi Mum' James sauntered over and gave his mum a kiss, 'Hi Dad' James grinned at his father who grinned back at him, 'And Lily' James just looked mildly curious as to why Lily was with his parents

'At last, I suppose you and Sirius were off causing trouble somewhere' Isabelle looked amused even though she sounded slightly annoyed at being kept waiting

'Of course not mum' James said as innocently as he could, Lily snorted in derision, and James stuck his tongue out at her

'Well we have exciting news for you two, Lily can stay at James' house soon' Charles Evans announced happily, Lily and James just stared at him silently in horror 

'We knew you'd be happy, this way we get to learn more about muggle life' James' dad Jeremy chimed in also very happy, how anyone could mistake the looks on Lily and James' faces for happiness was anyone's guess

'And Lily can spend time with a real wizard family, it's good for everybody' Charles spoke again, both Lily and James could think of at least two people it wasn't good for, but neither had yet recovered enough to speak. They still hadn't spoken when their respective parents dragged them in opposite directions after arranging to be in touch soon to sort out when the first visit could be

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Summer holidays before third year. Potter's house

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'Mum she can't stay here, she's evil, she'll try and kill me' James was chasing his mum around as she went around the rooms making sure their house elf had done the cleaning properly

'Nonsense James, she's a perfectly sweet little girl' Isabelle reached the kitchen where Charles was reading the paper apparently satisfied that the house was in a good condition for guests

'Dad, make mum see sense' James begged his father for support

'She seems very polite to me, she should be a good influence on you' Jeremy stuck his head round the paper round the paper long enough to reply until he went back to reading about the Chudley Cannons latest defeat

'I can't believe you're doing this to me' James said with a dramatic sigh as he stamped his foot angrily

'James you better be nice to her' his mother stopped what she was doing and narrowed her eyes suspiciously at her only son

'I can't be nice to somebody who tries to kill me can I?' James pointed out to his mum in what he thought was a controlled and reasoned grown-up voice

'Yes you can if it's Lily' Isabelle said as she walked out of the room leaving a gobsmacked James to owl Sirius with the bad news

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Evans house

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'Lily get a move on, we can't keep James waiting' Lily's dad called from the driveway, he never knew why women took so long to get ready, he had very clearly said that they were leaving at twelve

'But I haven't packed, or washed my hair and I get car sick' Lily's head appeared at her bedroom window

'Your mum packed for you, you washed your hair yesterday and you do not get carsick' Charles Evans ticked each one off on his fingers and tried not to roll his eyes, Lily had been trying to get out of this visit for weeks

'I haven't said goodbye to Petunia' Lily tried desperately

'Stay away from me freak' Petunia's voice shrieked from a nearby room where she was probably on the phone to her latest boyfriend and trying out new nail varnish

'I need to say goodbye to the goldfish' Lily gave a last ditch attempt to save herself, but even she would have to admit that it was a lame excuse

'We don't have goldfish, now get in the car and stop stalling' Charles tried to look stern, but it was hard because Lily always made him smile even when she was been difficult

'Fine. But if I come home dead it'll be your fault' Lily finally gave up as she slammed her window shut

'Deal' Charles had to suppress a grin as he heard Lily storm down the stairs, making sure to stamp on each one very loudly to express her annoyance at the arrangements 

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Summer holidays before third year. Potter's house

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'Come on, if I have to stay at your stupid house at least let me join in' Lily chased James, Sirius, Remus and Peter into the garden, the boys reached a tree and climbed up into a tree house that appeared to have been made the muggle way and was rather shakily held together with a support in the ground

'No. Can't you read the sign? It says no girls' James yelled down pointing to a sign that said _'The marauders_' with '_no girls'_ written scruffily in James' writing underneath 

'This is just because I beat you at cards' Lily shielded her eyes against the bright sun to glare at the boys

'No, it's because you're a girl' James wished he had some dungbombs up in his tree-house to drop on Lily's head and make her leave him alone, he certainly didn't want her at his house

'This really isn't fair' Lily huffed frowning 

'I really couldn't care' James shouted back from the very top of his tree house. Lily kicked the tree house support in anger and made a move to walk away, a large crash made her turn round and witness a collapsed tree house with four very shaken boys lying in the rubble

'It would have been a lot easier to just let her in' Remus groaned as he sat up rubbing his head 

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A/N: Well there it is years one-three, next chapter will be up soon with years four-six and after that I'll start the real story, this is really just setting the scene. After the first two chapters there won't be any need to jump around places as much so it will be easier to read. Anyway please review, I'm rather nervous about what you all thought


	2. Years three - five, a change due to Pete...

Disclaimer: All characters belong to J.K.Rowling, I own nothing at all

A/N: I just realised that I never said that this isn't really a love/hate story, only for the first chapter, after that they make friends and should stay friends. These first two chapters are based on the swan princess I forgot to mention that in the previous chapter, but after this it will be an original plot

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''Its funny how some things turn out. 

We're playing at the backyard wondering 

How our life would be 

The boys were always teasing me 

The time we had together, 

The difference you were a friend to me 

I never thought you wanted more than that''

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Summer holidays before fifth year. Potter's house

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'I can't believe it, she's been here two minutes and she's already flirting' James leant angrily against the doorway watching Lily giggle and flutter her eyelids at something Sirius' cousin had just said 

'Calm down' Peter advised rather nervously, he was usually on the receiving end of James' anger and didn't want to wake up with his arms covered in warts again

'Yeah I think you really sort of like her' Remus said rather insightfully 

'Fess up Prongs' Sirius said with a wink and a large nudge in James' side, he always enjoyed talking about girls although not quite as much as he enjoyed dating them

'I'd like her better if she lost at cards' James admitted grouchily, even though he knew that wasn't the kind of answer his friends wanted

'And I'd like you better if you got eaten by the giant squid, so I guess we're both out of luck' Lily had walked by just in time to hear James' comment and continued walking away, her now very long hair hanging right down her back and swaying as she walked. James just stared after her in surprise, he couldn't believe she had practically wished him dead, girls seemed to find him irresistible with the exception of Lily, not that he minded, she might be very pretty but she was also very annoying. 

'Ouch that's harsh' Sirius winced in imaginary pain

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Summer holidays before sixth year. Potter's house

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'James I'm disappointed at how unoriginal you are' Lily said as she found James alone in the garden, he looked up briefly and grunted in return, so Lily continued 'Throwing darts at my picture. Am I not worth a voodoo doll?'

'Who told you…?' James looked up in surprise and began to ask but stopped because he already knew the answer

'Peter' they both said in unison laughing

'Remind me to never tell him any of my secrets' Lily said 

'So long as you don't tell my parents about the dart thing, they might not find it funny' James said trying to sound casual, Lily suddenly remembered exactly who she was talking to 

'I don't find it funny' she tried to sound as annoyed as she usually would at James and added a glare for good measure although she still felt an unexplainable urge to laugh

'You're the one who doesn't like me and anyway I bet you throw darts at my picture' James retorted with his own glare, Lily's blush confirmed his suspicions about the darts and for a second it seemed as though neither would ever laugh together again but Lily was pondering what James had just said 

'I thought that you didn't like me' Lily exclaimed in surprise

'I just found you slightly annoying' James said with a shrug, it was true he had never really hated Lily he just always seemed to clash with her at everything

'And I found you slightly big-headed' Lily said, James for some reason didn't seem to find this insulting and instead smiled at Lily. A pause ensued which for once was not punctuated by glares and curses 

'Friends?' Lily decided to make the first move and held her hand out

'Alright' James shook her hand firmly and Lily received a small electric shock from something James was holding in the palm of his hand

'I get the feeling it's going to be even more dangerous to be friends with you than it is to be enemies' Lily said with a sigh but she was smiling, she didn't mind the jokes James played

'Oh it is. But we're going to have a lot of fun on the way' James grinned and Lily grinned back at him. And that was how after five years they began a friendship, a simple conversation due to Peter's completely ineptness at keeping secrets. 

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Two weeks later. Potter's house

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'Lily I've got something I want to say to you' James stood nervously shifting from one foot to the other next to Lily who was sat on a low branch of a tree in the garden reading

'I have nothing to say to you really, but I'll listen' Lily looked up and smiled, James took a deep breath

'This is going to sound strange considering we only just became friends but I think I'm in love with you' James said quickly, Lily laughed hysterically and there were practically tears running down her face ' Not quite the response I was hoping for' James said rather grumpily 

'I'm sorry but you're James Potter serial womaniser, you must have practically dated the entire female population of Hogwarts' Lily tried to stop laughing to be serious but was finding it hard

'I can change, if you want' this wasn't going the way James had planned

'I don't believe you can change and I don't believe in love' Lily was now straight-faced and there was no doubt that she was serious, she wasn't about to become just another of James's girlfriends especially not when he claimed to love her

'At least give me a chance' James said 

'A chance to what? Change or make me believe in love' Lily said with a sigh, James wasn't taken been turned down very well

'Both' 

'No' Lily looked at him before shortly answering 

'Tell me you don't feel anything between us' James sat next to her on the branch and looked directly at her, Lily avoided looking at him

'I feel nothing' Lily concentrated on her book

'Look me in the eye and say it' James demanded

'I'll see you later James' Lily simply turned and walked away, she couldn't do it for some reason, she wasn't sure why, she'd been out with quite a few boys but they had all quickly realised that there was no chance of a long term serious relationship, Lily simply wouldn't consider it

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A week before sixth year starts. Village ball

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'You ok Lil? You're rather quiet' James asked as he danced with Lily at his village's local dance

'Maybe I'm trying to believe' Lily said rather thoughtfully

'Believe in what?' James asked as he stopped dancing to just sway with his arms round Lily's waist

'Life and love' 

'Good for you, next step is to give in to my charm' James said with a smirk, as he tightened his hold on Lily, he didn't want to lose her

'You are so immature' Lily sighed exasperated, she was trying really hard to give James a chance because Remus had begged her to earlier but he was making it very hard

'And I'm sure I could pull any other girl in the room' James flashed a cheeky smile and Lily's doubts suddenly and surprisingly melted into nothingness 

'I am happy to be here' Lily said slowly feeling rather awkward as she dropped her arms from his shoulders

'Because of me' James asked not masking the hope in his voice, Lily smiled coyly as she tilted her head in thought

'I really don't know, I've no idea what I'm doing anymore' Lily said after a while sounding rather exasperated and confused, she didn't know why she was here, she didn't even believe in love

'This is my idea of love' James supplied as he leant closer to her, but just as he was about to kiss her she turned her head and pulled away. 'What's wrong?' James asked, he'd been so close to kissing Lily

'I need to know what it is you see in me'

You're beautiful, absolutely stunning' James said whole-heartedly 

'Thank you, but what else? Do you only like me for how I look?' Lily needed to know he loved her for just been her, James knew exactly what he wanted to say that she was kind, courageous and caring. But he was caught off guard by the question and rather nervous, the silence was pounding in his ears and he needed to give Lily an answer. His mind was suddenly blank and his throat was deathly dry, he just needed to say something to fill the uncomfortable silence, he opened his mouth to stutter out the first words he thought of

'What else is there?' the instant the words left his mouth he regretted them, he hadn't meant it

'Wrong answer James' Lily said quietly as she turned and walked away, James stood still in shock, the rest of the marauders who had been stood watching came over

'Painful, bad luck' Peter said trying to look sympathetic, but he was rather pleased that for once James hadn't got the girl 

'She says do you like me for my looks and you say what else is there' Sirius screeched in horror shaking his head, even he couldn't believe how wrong James had just got it

'But I didn't…. I mean…. I know it was stupid but…. What I meant' James spluttered still in shock

'Stupid move James, I think you just lost this girl for good' Remus said rather annoyed, he had spent ages convincing Lily to give James a chance and James had badly blown it

'Never. I'll prove my love, I'll do whatever it takes' James suddenly cheered up as a plan formed in his head, the other boys smiled glad to see James back to his old self, 'And you three can help me' James added, the smiles instantly fell from the faces of Sirius, Remus and Peter

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A/N: There's the start of this tale of mine, next we go to the sixth year and stay there for many many chapters, so what do you think of this? I was going to put these first two chapters together to form one long prequel but fairly obviously I didn't. Please review and feel free to suggest anything you want. Did I mention please review? Yes? Never mind I'll mention it again, please please please review

martini addict – Thanks, is this posting soon enough?

suze – I didn't realise I hadn't mentioned the movie in the disclaimer, I have now corrected that mistake

Silver Dragonrider – Cheers. In response to your review on 'It can't be me' which will be finished soon I promise. I 

know it was a quick clean end to Voldie, but I realised that I never meant to have him in it to 

begin with and it was getting too far away from the humour 

Shits and Giggles – Like I said before I'm sorry I didn't mention it in the disclaimer, after this chapter I'm not going 

near the plot of the Swan Princess ever again, it was just a way to show the early years quickly. Thank you for been my first reviewer

porkypop – Glad to help deprive you of sleep, although caffeine is just as good 

Quinn – Thank you


	3. If you love Lily then why...

Disclaimer: I own the characters of Anna, Jeramy and Isabelle Potter and Rose and Charles Evans, the rest of these characters do not belong to me, neither does the song

A/N: This is what the rest of the story will be like, the first two chapters were just a strange way of doing a prequel just to give you a brief insight into the characters.

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''Cause I can't fight this feeling anymore

I've forgotten what I've started fighting for

And if I have to crawl upon the floor

Come crashing through your door

Baby I can't fight this feeling anymore''

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It was late October when James Potter impatiently pushed his fringe out of his eyes and scanned the common room, he had just been taking the Quidditch practice, he was the captain of Gryffindor and played chaser. Sirius Black his best friend was also on the team as a beater, but had disappeared immediately after practice probably to find a new girlfriend. James spotted the person he was looking for, she was hard to miss with her flaming red hair frantically scribbling on a piece of parchment

'Lily are you ready to give me a chance' James inquired as he collapsed into the seat next to Lily

'I'm too busy doing my homework to indulge in your fantasy world' Lily paused to bite her quill in thought, she normally did her homework with her best friend Anna. But at that moment Anna was busy sneaking into the kitchens with Remus and Peter, they had already finished the homework and unlike Lily saw no need to try and perfect it

'All you need is love' James leant over to see what she was doing, 

'No what I need is another 3 inches on my essay for Professor Binns, love is just another of those games you play' Lily said as James successfully managed to distract her from her homework

'Life's just one big game' James informed her knowledgeable, he hadn't stopped trying to get a date with Lily for the last two months and had no intention of stopping any time soon

'Is that right? Well from what I overheard Rachel telling the Ravenclaws this morning love and life is a game you can play perfectly well without me' Lily put her quill down as she turned to face James who was now pulling the thread off the edge of his cuffs, his head snapped up in interest at the mention of his latest girlfriends name 

'What did you hear? It was good right?'

'Of course it was Jamsie boy, who could resist that charm of yours' Lily said mockingly

'That's what I thought till I met you'

'You know I don't believe in love, you should just concentrate on playing pranks on Snape' Lily sighed as she told James that she didn't believe in love for the twentieth time that week, he didn't seem to give up 

'Everyone believes in love, you just haven't realised it yet and I do not play pranks' James said the last part rather indignantly 

'Yes you do, planting dungbombs in the girls Quidditch changing room is a prank' 

'That was ages ago' James protested 

'It was two weeks ago' Lily reminded him, she had been rather surprised when Sarah and Orion the two female Quidditch players for Gryffindor came tearing through the common room chasing James and Sirius and shouting insults

'Exactly ages and ages. But Lily as a prefect you should know better than to encourage me'

'I should but I don't and James as a prefect you should know better than playing them' Lily still couldn't believe James had been made a prefect, he might be smart but he wasn't mature

'Don't worry we won't get caught, it'll ruin my chances for head boy' James had been informed by his mother that she expected him to stay out of trouble this year, otherwise she'd make sure his bank account would be cut off. For James this was a serious threat because he needed that money so that he could buy a house as soon as he left school

'Yes you will and you'll get yet another detention and I'll just laugh at you' Lily picked up her quill and began to write again. James finally left her alone to go and get a shower after failing to convince her to date him for the 62nd time but he was confident that it would be 63rd time lucky

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'Jeez all he did was throw a big red ball' Lily was in a bad temper especially because a first year had just been sick in the hallways and Lily had been left to deal with it, while James organised his party to celebrate Gryffindor beating Hufflepuff in the first game of the season

'Lily show some support for your house' Anna scolded half-heartedly, she had become accustomed to her best friends bad moods over the past six years and had decided to just let them blow over, while she concentrated on watching the people dancing to see if there were any good looking boys she hadn't already dated

'Whoop-di-woo hooray for Gryffindor' Lily said very sarcastically

'Why Lily I never knew you cared' Sirius' voice came from behind them

'I don't'

'Come on, I saw you in the stands cheering' James joined Sirius holding a mug of butterbeer, Lily had never worked out exactly how James, Sirius, Remus and Peter always seemed to be eating things that were only available in Hogsmede

'How could you see that from under that pile of girls?' Lily inquired still very grumpy

'I can't help it if girls fall naturally for my grace and charm' James flashed a very cocky grin at them

'You wish. They're only after one thing' Anna said with a snort

'I know, my superb body' James said with an exaggerated sigh as he gave two passing fifth years a half smile causing them to go into fits of giggles and they would no doubt soon be fully paid members of James' fan club if they weren't already

'No, me' Sirius said as thought it was obvious that all girls fancied him, which unfortunately wasn't far from the truth, Anna rolled her eyes earning a glare from Sirius

'You're both as bad as each other' Lily said in exasperation turning away from the laughing boys to pour herself a drink 

'We know' they said in unison laughing

'By the way Lily, you're acting rather jealous, anyone would think you were falling for me' James said as he brushed past Lily to go and talk to the rest of the Quidditch team

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One week later and nothing significant had changed in anyone's lives, Lily had refused to go out with James another four times, all six of them had got detention when one of Sirius' pranks had backfired. James was still dating Rachel mainly because he couldn't really be bothered to change girlfriends as often as he used to do, Sirius was now dating a Hufflepuff sixth year and had developed a major crush on a Ravenclaw seventh year called Christine. James had learnt a new way of transfiguring food which he tried out on Anna, earning him a book in the face.

Lily had turned down a seventh year called Jon who had asked her out, this had caused James to be very happy until Lily had told him that she just didn't want to go out with anyone just at the moment. Remus also had a new girlfriend who was a Ravenclaw fifth year who had been following him around for the past three years until he had taken pity on her, it was now the start of November which signalled Peter's 17th birthday

'Happy birthday Peter' Anna said walking into the boy's dormitory and giving Peter a kiss on the cheek

'Yeah Happy birthday' Lily gave him a quick kiss as well, partly because she always kissed her friends on birthdays and partly because she knew James would get annoyed

'Where's my kiss?' James asked pouting as he sat on his bed already fully dressed, Remus was sat opposite on his looking rather tired but Sirius was still fast asleep despite the racket Peter was making opening his presents

'In the kitchen' Lily suggested helpfully, Anna rolled her eyes and went to sit next to Remus

'Very funny' James glared at her

'I know. You don't get a kiss it's not your birthday' Lily informed James of this rule as though everybody should know it

'So on my birthday can I have a kiss?' James asked rather too eagerly 

'Yes, I'm sure Remus would be happy to kiss you' Lily pretended to misunderstand the question

'I would not' Remus said indignantly

'In that case you don't get a kiss' Lily shrugged

'Well now that's sorted out, here's your present' Anna quickly stood up in an attempt to stop an argument and gave Peter a package that looked rather hastily wrapped

'Me and Anna got it together' Lily added

'Thank you' Peter said clutching his new box of sugar quills, Anna and Lily hadn't been very sure what to get him so had gone for the very unoriginal choice of sweets 

'You didn't get me a present on my birthday' James interrupted drawing the attention back to himself 

'On your last birthday we still hated each other, now stop sulking and wake up Sirius before we miss breakfast' Lily said briskly as she looked at her watch

'Miss breakfast?' Sirius exclaimed as he jumped up and ran out of the dorm

'Does he realise he's still in his pyjamas?' Anna asked, looking doubtfully at the empty bed that Sirius had occupied moments before

'You said the magic words and nothing will keep Sirius away from food' Remus said, he should know he had spent the last 6 years sharing a room with him

'At least now the girls can stop having that eternal debate about whether he sleeps in boxers or in the nude' Lily said practically, smiling slightly as she imagined the uproar that would greet Sirius in the great hall

'You have that conversation too?' Peter asked, Lily and Anna stopped smiling and looked very disturbed

'Don't worry we talk about you not Sirius' James jumped in, not wanting to give the girls any reason to spread weird rumours about him

'This isn't sounding any better' Lily informed James as she turned to him looking as though she was likely to get annoyed

'Let's go to breakfast' Remus said leading Anna and Peter out of the door, he had seen the look in Lily's eye and didn't want to be around if she got angry, however James hung back

'Feel free to share my bed anytime you want to find out what I wear to sleep in' James said in what he called his seductive manner as he wiggled his eyebrows suggestively

'What if you sleep naked?' Lily asked trying to sound naïve and innocent

'The offer still stands' 

'What if I sleep nude?'

'Especially then' James smiled as a rather surprised Lily pulled herself together and followed him down to breakfast

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'You're right Sirius, Rachel is going to drive me crazy' James moaned as he came into the common room later that day after a date with Rachel who had previously dated Sirius for about three days before he had felt trapped

'Poor James, can't find somebody who's perfect' Sirius grinned at his best friend, Peter was in detention with McGonagall, Lily and Anna were playing chess next to them and Remus was helping Anna, not because she needed the help, they were just good friends

'Oh I already have, but she won't believe me' James was looking directly at Lily as he spoke and she seemed to grow uncomfortable under his gaze

'Thanks for the compliment' Lily looked up from her chess game with Anna with a slight smiled on her face

'That's quite alright, I'd much rather compliment you then spend time with Rachel' James smiled even though he was exhausted from listening to Rachel constantly talk about her new book and make-up which seemed a strange combination

'If you love Lily so much, then why were you with Rachel?' Anna asked as Remus whispered in her ear to take Lily's king

'Good question Anna. What's the answer Prongs?' Sirius grinned at the new ways to embarrass James

'Come on James, why do you kiss a different girl each week if you love me?' Lily suddenly appeared interested which could be because she had just lost the chess game

'Hey I said I loved you, not that I wanted to be a bloody monk' James held his hands up as he tried to defend himself against the attacks 

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Quinn- Thanks for reviewing

Marionie Hearts- I've realised that you have reviewed a hell of a lot of my stories and I really appreciate it, I am in the process of writing the next chapter of 'When Oliver met Ginny' and it's thanks to you

Silver Dragonrider- Thanks for reviewing yet another of my stories 

A/N: The number of reviews will determine how quickly I update this


	4. Lily, Lucius and an elf called Spoony

Disclaimer: Song and characters don't belong to me, with the usual exception of Anna

A/N: I've been neglecting this story for ages, but I now think I can make a real go at it with the storylines I have in mind. So here's chapter 4

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''I'll fight for you, I'll give you all I got to give  
I'll fight for you, as long as we should live  
I'll search for heaven each day  
And together, we'll find a way  
And I'll fight for you darling  
I'll fight for you...''

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'You'll never guess what' Peter burst into the common room looking out of breath and flustered, not that this alarmed anybody, Peter did have a tendency to get worked up by pointless things. So James and Sirius didn't even pay any attention although Remus did glance up from where they were sat with Lily and Anna 

'In that case we won't bother trying' Lily didn't even bother to look up, Peter had never been exactly her most favourite person in the world 

'That's a really good reply' Anna giggled as she put her quill down, glad of an excuse to have a break on this rather boring Saturday

'Thank you, I've been perfecting my sarcastic nature' Lily said with mock modesty

'Lily Evans, Queen of sarcasm. That sounds quite good' Sirius commented also realising that participating in the conversation meant doing less homework and Sirius loved to talk

'If Lily's Queen then who's King?' Peter asked having totally forgotten his thrilling news 

'No-one. I rule alone with help from my trusty advisor, the most honourable Anna' Lily said play-acting, trying to look superior and Queen-like. Anna and the boys grinned but Peter looked extremely confused as though he didn't really understand what was going on, or maybe that was his normal expression

'Isn't that priest?' Peter asked but everyone ignored him

'Why thank you Queen Lily, my advice is to push Sirius in the lake' Anna said

'That's mighty good advice, well done' Lily praised as Sirius looked indignant and James and Remus laughed and applauded

'Hey, leave me alone. And you have to chose a King it's the rules' Sirius protested, Peter looked rather pleased that one of his friends had finally backed him up

'Fine, so who would you advise me to pick, most honourable Anna?' Lily sighed as she gave in 

'You can chose any boy you won't, nobody would say no to you' Anna flattered Lily 

'Well give me some options' Lily demanded, Anna twirled a piece of her black hair round her finger apparently in deep thought before finally saying:

'There's Peter'

'Too short and dumpy' Lily dismissed instantly, Peter understandably looked rather annoyed, he would gladly of hit her if he hadn't been scared she would hit him back, Anna continued to twirl her hair 

'Erm, Sirius' Anna said after a few seconds just choosing the boy sat in front of her, Sirius immediately perked up at hearing his name 

'Too tall and crazy' Lily said firmly, Sirius didn't seem offended but more pleased than anything else at being called crazy

'Not James' Anna said as a statement, James looked angry and was about to say something

'No, too annoying and smelly' Lily agreed, James now looked affronted at being called smelly and was about to protest but once again Lily cut him off by crying out joyfully 'I've worked it out'

'Well done, you must have picked the wonderful…' Anna grinned widely as she left a dramatic pause 

'Remus' both girls said together giggling 

'I'm honoured most honourable Anna and Queen Lily, I'm sure together we will rid our fair kingdom of evil vagrants and riffraff like this' Remus indicated the other boys and then leant down to kiss both girls hands causing another fit of giggles

'Good plan King Remus' Anna said whole-heartedly

'Can I escort you two lovely ladies to dinner?' Remus asked charmingly offering an arm to each girl, which they accepted, and then they sauntered off leaving a shocked Peter, Sirius and James staring after them

'Were we just turned down in favour of Moony?' Sirius asked gobsmacked

'It would appear so, the world is going mad' James shook his head, not overly annoyed at Lily rejecting him again as it was just a game, he was now working on the theory that every rejection meant it was only closer to the time Lily would say yes

'Absolutely barmy' Sirius agreed as he left with James. Peter was still stood alone in the centre of the room scratching his head trying to figure out how he was the only one left 

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Lily knocked on the door and opened it, inside the hut sat James, Sirius and Peter

'Where's Hagrid?' Lily asked in surprise

'Feeding the nifflers' Sirius explained

'Why are you here?' James asked

'Fairly obviously I'm visiting Hagrid' Lily still hadn't shaken off her rather sarcastic mood caused by having to deal with some Hufflepuff who wasn't the brightest kid in the world and had somehow managed to spill sticky goo in Lily's hair which had taken ages to get out

'No need to be sarcastic' James said 

'Are you going soon?' Lily asked rather unpolitely 

'No. Are you staying long?' James narrowed his eyes at her

'Yes I think I will' Lily said with a very fake smile

'Wonderful' James snapped, obviously struggling to keep his temper. Sirius and Peter exchanged worried looks Lily and James were regressing to their previous state of hating each other

'Excellent' Lily said, her face clouding over as her anger built

'Guys what's the problem?' We're all friends here' Sirius jumped in quickly hoping that he wouldn't be caught in the middle of one of Lily and James' infamous fights, luckily they both clamed down 

'Oops, I guess I forgot' James said rather sheepishly

'Me too. Sorry' Lily scratched the side of her nose in a way that James loved

'Let's kiss and make up' James suggested grinning slyly 

'JAMES' Lily yelled in anger 'Can you not just keep your filthy thoughts to yourself'

'You can't blame a guy for trying' James defended but he backed away to what he thought was a safe distance

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'Sirius, Peter, James and Lily I don't normally get to see all of you at once' Hagrid said in a booming voice as he entered the hut

'It must be your lucky day then' Sirius said cockily 

'Where's Remus?' Hagrid suddenly realised one of the boys was missing

'Ill' all three boys said very quickly in unison, Lily was rather surprised by their response, when Peter had been ill it had taken them an entire week to work out where he had gone

'And Anna?' Hagrid enquired after Lily's best friend 

'She got detention from Filch' Lily said glaring at James who for once didn't know what he'd done wrong

'For what? I can't imagine her doing anything wrong' Hagrid had a soft spot for both girls and thought they were both wonderful

'She didn't, it was James under his invisibility cloak, he came in traipsing mud everywhere and Anna got the blame' Lily said as James flinched visibly under her glare 

'Poor girl, that wasn't very nice of you James' Hagrid reprimanded while keeping a close eye on Sirius who had decided to bond with Fang by telling the dog all about his crush on Christine, Fang however was more interested in chasing his tail round and round, not that this stopped Sirius from talking 

'How do you know somebody was there if they were under an invisibility cloak?' James asked trying to remain calm and look innocent 

'Because invisible shadows don't leave footprints' Lily said very icily

'Oops' James muttered. 

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The four students stayed talking for about an hour until Hagrid said they had to leave because it was late

'You coming back with us under the invisibility cloak?' Sirius asked as soon as they were outside Hagrid's hut, Lily glanced at James who smiled weakly he was still worried about making her more angry at him

'Alright' she agreed as James looked relieved and threw the cloak over all four of them.

It was a very slow procession back to the common room, Peter in particular kept banging into things but a sound from somewhere nearby wasn't caused by any of them. James dropped the cloak in alarm and exchanged glances with Sirius 

'Whoever you are show yourself' James drew his wand as a dark figure emerged from the shadows

'Stay calm Potter, you wouldn't want to hurt yourself' the young blond haired man sneered, James put his wand away again, he didn't trust the man but duelling him wouldn't have been advisable

'Malfoy why are you here?' James asked with thinly veiled hatred, Malfoy had left Hogwarts the year James had started. Unfortunately their parents were both highly respected members of the wizarding community so they frequently ran into each other, most times resulting in curses been thrown

'Not that it's any of your business, I was visiting Snape' Malfoy said looking rather smug

'Does the headmaster know you're here?' James asked suspiciously

'Does he know you and your little gang are sneaking around late at night' Malfoy retorted

'They aren't my little gang' James said through clenched teeth

'I apologise, you've replaced Lupin with a much prettier member, it's just a shame she's a mudblood' Malfoy had noticed Remus' absence, he knew James' friends just as they knew his friends Crabbe and Goyle or rather his followers 

'Don't you dare speak to Lily like that' James growled, Sirius' knuckles were white as he clenched his fist tight obviously restraining himself from punching Malfoy and leaving James to sort it out

'Ah Lily, such a pretty name, she really is a rather beautiful creature. My little flower' Lucius ran a finger down her cheek and brushed a lock of her hair behind her ear, James and Sirius seething with rage pulled out their wands but they were too slow. Lily had taken a step forwards and slapped Malfoy with all her might across his face leaving a very red mark and a very shocked Malfoy

'Don't ever call me a mudblood again, don't ever call me a little flower again and never ever even think about touching my hair ever again' Lily hissed in a clear voice as she turned and stalked away 

'Well you heard the lady Malfoy, now leave' Sirius hadn't put away his wand and didn't until Malfoy's footsteps could no longer be heard on the stone floor

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'Are you alright?' Sirius actually looked concerned as the three boys approached Lily who was sat alone in the common room, everyone else having long since headed to bed

'Of course, I love being insulted during late night strolls' Lily's sarcasm wasn't going to be stopped by anyone, especially not Malfoy

'Malfoy's a prat, it's a well known fact' Sirius offered as consolation not really knowing the right thing to say, James and Peter didn't know either

'Why do you think he was here?' Lily asked 

'Probably recruiting Snape to be a deatheater' James said looking disgusted at just mentioning Snape's name

'A deatheater?' Lily asked puzzled

'One of those idiots in black robes who follow Voldemort' James explained

'He killed the Prewett's last year, didn't he?' Peter said pleased to have information, James was annoyed at Peter for mentioning it in front of Lily but he couldn't realistically hope to keep her ignorant of the facts and it was probably better for her to be aware of them 

'Yeah, the so called Dark Lord' Sirius said mockingly, obviously not seeing Voldemort as any kind of Lord

'I think there are dark times ahead' Lily said with a sigh partly because she was tired and partly because of the threat of the rising Voldemort

'Probably, but no matter what just remember to laugh and love, we can't let fear rule us' James said more calmly than he felt and with rather more insight than he normally showed

'We'll cope somehow, no Dark Lord can ever stop us living our lives the way we want to' Sirius added also more sober than usual, there was a silence for a few minutes as they all thought silently, which Lily broke by announcing:

'I'm going to bed' she stood up and headed to the stairs

'We're off to meet Moony' Peter said absent-mindedly, James and Sirius looked annoyed then horrified as Lily paused on the stairs and turned back to them

'What? Isn't Moony what you call Remus?' she asked rather curiously

'He didn't say Moony, he said…' James tried to explain, but trailed off as he couldn't think of any plausible explanation other than Remus been a werewolf

'He said Spoony, one of the house elves' Sirius jumped in trying to save the situation

'That's a strange name' Lily said surprised

'Well those house elves are strange things' Sirius said with a forced laugh that James joined in with, Lily gave them both a very shrewd look but then shrugged

'Oh okay then, goodnight' the note of suspicion was still evident in her voice, but she did this time reach her dormitory before Peter was hit round the head by two very angry best friends, one a stag and one a dog

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A/N: Well there's chapter four. Watcha think? Good, bad, indifferent? 


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